


For the Greater Good

by MsChievous



Series: Whumptober 2020 [11]
Category: Dr. STONE (Anime), Dr. STONE (Manga)
Genre: Gen, Injury, Manipulation, Whump
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-10-30
Updated: 2020-10-30
Packaged: 2021-03-08 22:08:31
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,147
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27283930
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/MsChievous/pseuds/MsChievous
Summary: Whumptober d30: Ignoring an injury.Gen is pretty much put out of commission from Magma's attacks, but knows that Tsukasa will come to check up on him any day now. Despite his injuries, he sets off to make sure the Kingdom of Science continues to flourish
Series: Whumptober 2020 [11]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1949494
Kudos: 30
Collections: Whumptober 2020





	For the Greater Good

**Author's Note:**

> Alright! This is the end of Whumptober for me! I vaguely wanted to do the "experiment" prompt but couldn't decide what to do in time XP
> 
> I'm pretty proud of myself for managing most of this on time! What will I do with my time now? XDDD

Gen Asagiri starts into wakefulness, shaking off the phantom pains from the blond man’s attacks which followed him into his nightmares. He sits up carefully, favoring what felt like a broken rib, and glances around. He’s still in Senkuu’s laboratory, though there’s no one else around. He carefully shifts to his feet, ignoring how his cuts and bruises twist and ache. He misses “modern” painkillers dearly, but then again, turning back up at Tsukasa’s Empire with injuries treated with old-world medicine would be a dead giveaway that the scientist still lives. 

Shame.

He spies his clothes neatly folded and tucked nearby and starts dressing himself. He’s kicking himself for choosing an undershirt that laces up. Every shift of his arm causes new pain to flare up: in his shoulder, in his wrist, in his elbow. He winces as he tightens the cording and wraps it a few times around his waist to secure it. Then comes the easy part of putting on his kimonos. The rough woven texture of the fabric grates against the abrasions over his skin, but still he moves forward. He doesn’t really have a choice in the matter. 

Gen had said he was only planning on being there for a couple days. Any more time spent here would put everyone else in danger. And while the wouldn’t mind the blond man meeting the wrong end of one of Tsukasa’s legendary punches, pretty much everyone else in the village didn’t deserve the guy’s fury.

He sighs, wincing against the pain in his chest, then peers out the doors. The lab is outside the village enough that no one sees him as he gracelessly stumbles down the ladder to the hard ground below. 

He momentarily laments the lack of cars and roads that would get him to where he wants in style. Perhaps that’s something Senkuu would be able to do within the next…. How long would it take to make a car?

Not important, unfortunately. Gritting his teeth, he takes off toward Tsukasa’s home base, ignoring how every step stabbed pain against his bare feet and his labored breathing made his ribs ache even more. In his haste, he trips over a tree root and hits the ground hard. Pain blossoms across his chest and his vision greys.

Desperately, he scrambles back to his feet. He’s not sure how much time he has until Tsukasa comes to check up on him, but it would be best to get back as soon as possible to avoid the brute going anywhere near the village.

So he heaves himself up, ignoring possibly  _ another _ broken rib and a sore shoulder as he hurries back on his way. He wishes he had less distance to travel as he was never the most athletic person, and running uphill with so many injuries has him pulling on reserves of willpower he wasn’t aware he even had.

Time passes by oddly. One moment, he’s hurtling past swathes of wildflowers, and the next, an arrow thuds into the ground in front of him.

He stops short, looking from the arrow, up to its source. It’s then he realizes he’ at Tsukasa’s headquarters. “Oi, Ukyo-chan, it’s me!” He calls out to the archer. “I have news for our dear leader.” He steps forward and no more arrows follow, a good sign that Ukyo believes him.

Tsukasa sits on a sturdy chair, the pelts of the lions he’s slain draped around his shoulders like the king he plays at being. The image is certainly striking, a king that bested the king of the beasts. The man looks up as Gen enters. 

“You’ve arrived,” he says, voice low and concerned. “You’re late…” he cocks his head to the side, “and injured. What news do you bring?”   


Gen bends double, catching his breath. “I had a teeeeeensy run-in with the ocals-lay - I don’t think they like outsiders very much - but I saw neither hide nor hair of this Snekuu fellow. It seems he’s truly dead as a doornail, six feet below,” The lie flows like a steady river. He meets Tsukasa’s gaze evenly - not challenging, but firm. The sign of a man telling the truth.

Tsukasa clasps his hands and rests his chin on them. If Gen were any less of a mentalist, he would have assumed Tsukasa was merely pensive. But behind that vaguely pleased exterior there was a bit of sadness in there. Interesting.

“Thank you,” the brute says, “Go rest up. I’ll need your help reviving some others.” 

Gen nods, “I am ever at your service Tsuka-chan,” 

“Don’t call me that,” the leader growls. One of the guards nearby takes a threatening step back, and Gen fakes timidity as he backs off to the system of caves that function as an apartment complex.

The adrenaline leaves him much faster than he thought, leaving him nauseous and groggy with pain. Pain is a thing of the mind, he knows. With enough training, you can effectively ignore the pain and keep moving until your body collapses. However, he was exhausted and barely had the brain power to keep up his lie to someone as perceptive as Tsukasa.

He blinks out of his reverie, realizing his vision is rapidly greying. He hears a female voice talking from beside him and desperately reaches out, clutching a thin shoulder. He can only hope whoever it is would take pity on him. “S-sorry,” he manages. He tries to explain what’s going on, but his brain and mouth feel like they’re filled with cotton and nothing comes out. A small, calloused hand grips his as the grey turns black and he feels himself falling.

* * *

Yuzuriha slips back into the living quarters with a pile of clothes in a basket on her hip, trying to ignore the feeling of being watched. It’s become a constant the last few weeks to feel the skin on the back of her neck prickle. It only abates as she spends her time “sewing” in the caves. She assumes that as long as Tsukasa doesn’t think she’s trying to escape, they’re content at watching her from a distance.

She moves carefully so the glue doesn’t get on any of the clothes she just made. She spots Taiju near the entrance and waves him over. “Hey, I’m just heading upstairs,” she says, “Do you want to-”

Before she can finish her question, a hand grabs her shoulder, leaning down with all of its weight. She glances to the side in surprise and sees a vaguely familiar face - Gen Asagiri. She knows Tsukasa revived him a while ago but she hasn’t seen him in a few days… and now he looks quite injured.

“S-sorry,” he murmurs, though it comes out slurred and awkward. 

She rests a hand on his and asks, “Are you okay?” As she does, Gen pitches forward. Her stomach drops as she manages to snag his wrist in her free hand. Luckily Taiju manages to catch the rest of him to keep him from hitting the ground too hard.

She straightens as Taiju picks up the mentalist. “I don’t suppose you happen to know where his quarters are?” She asks. When Taiju shakes his head, Yuzuriha sighs. “Then follow me.”

* * *

Gen comes to consciousness slowly. He’s laying on his side facing a natural window in the cave. The room is not his, that much he can tell almost without opening his eyes. He pauses, attempting to get his bearings. He should probably try to pretend to be sleeping until he has a better idea of who is currently housing him and why.

It doesn’t take much time. It’s a woman’s room, or a room a woman spends a lot of time in. The window has been artificially widened and a dress hangs out of the nearby clothes basket. A smaller woman, then. Short dark hair, if the hair on the pillow are anything to go by. 

He hasn’t spent much time in Tsukasa’s headquarters so he can’t immediately think of anyone fitting that description. He’s just racking his brain when he hears the sound of shuffling feet coming down the hall. He closes his eyes and lets his breathing deepen.

“Asagiri-san?” A soft voice calls from the doorway. The voice is definitely familiar, but he can’t quite place it without the face. “Ah,” the woman continues quietly, “I think he’s still asleep then. Thanks for helping me get water Taiju, looks like we didn’t have to worry.”

“It’s no problem!” An enthusiastic male stage-whispers back, “I’m happy to help! Even if it  _ is _ someone working for, well… you know who…”

_ Taiju _ . Ah, yes. If Taiju is the male, then Yuzuriha is the female. That sounds about right. They were depetrified at the same time as Tsukasa, if he remembers correctly. They’re Senkuu’s friends, and probably spies for him, assuming they’re aware he’s alive.

Soft, steady hands flip him on his back and start to undo his clothes until he’s wearing nothing but his pants. Someone places a damp cloth across his forehead, brushing his hair out of his face with gentle fingers.

“He kinda looks like you after you take a few hits, huh?" Yuzuriha laughs softly. “So… so some _ one _ did this to him. Could it have been… maybe the person who made the smoke signals wasn’t alone?” She’s silent for a moment. “You don’t think that he found out about S-”

Before either of them can say something they’ll regret, Gen lets out a soft groan, as if he’s just waking up. He meets the gaze of a worried-looking girl with a petrification scar on her shoulder.

The girl looks momentarily startled before her expression smoothes into a vaguely concerned expression. “Hello, Asagiri-san, how are you feeling? Sorry I didn’t ask before I, uh….” she glances down at his bare chest and pinkens slightly.

“Please,” he interjects to save her the embarrassment of explaining further, “call me Gen. And thank you for treating me. It’s unfortunate painkillers no longer exist.” He lets his voice break to make it sound even more pathetic than it really was. Anything to make it seem like they had the upper hand.

The hand that had been fidgeting with the hem of her skirt stills, and she bites the inside of her lip as she responds, “I-it looks pretty bad. What happened? A fall?” Her eyes still look warm and concerned, though there are vague stress lines around her mouth and forehead. 

Had he not overheard her conversation earlier, Gen might have considered Yuzuriha seriously believed he had only fallen. However, a little head shake and the freezing of her extraneous movements clinched it for him. She didn’t believe a word she just said. However, with proper training, she could be a great liar.

“I wish,” he manages a laugh, mind racing. If he lets these two know that he is on their side, they would be less likely to make any rash decisions. But how to do so without blowing all of their covers? Who knew if Ukyo was paying them any mind, after all. “No. I came across a primitive village- well, Tsukasa asked me to confirm a former scientist’s death and suspected he was taking refuge in the village. Along the way, I discovered those villagers are decidedly unfriendly.”

He keeps a keen eye on their reactions. Yuzuriha’s breath hitches faintly and she swallows, though there’s only the faintest microexpression of worry on her face. It doesn’t seem to be directed at him, so it’s only logical to assume that she’s worried about he just said, about him trying to find Senkuu.

Taiju, on the other hand, is much more obvious- fists clenched and brows upturned for just a second too long. Not that he was a bad liar per se, but between the two of them, Gen was more concerned about Taiju.

There’s a pause before Yuzuriha tentatively asks, “And?”

“And what?”

“Did you… find out?”

Gen allowed himself a moment to enjoy the feeling of anticipation in the air. “Oh, about the scientist?” He feigns surprise, sitting himself up so he’s closer to them. His ribs ache in protest. “I did, but weren’t you there with him when he died? Surely you’ll know then…” he pauses for dramatic effect. Yuzuriha and Taiju freeze, statues in the face of Gen’s next words, “...that he truly perished.”

They both look momentarily dumbfounded, and he allows himself another beat of satisfaction. “At least I would assume. It’s not like the village had  _ electricity _ , or even metal weapons,” he scoffs, fixing them both with a decidedly pointed look.

Yuzuriha looks him over hard for a moment before her lip wobbles and tears start to puddle in the corners. She mouths,  _ “Thank you.” _ to him before stumbling out the door, dragging her boyfriend behind her.

Gen watches them go, self-satisfied smirk plastered across his face. “Any time,” he murmurs.

**Author's Note:**

> ok listen I just think Yuzuriha and Gen would be friends and i wanna write a fic about it. Also it makes sense that Taiju and Yuzuriha knew Gen was on their side or they might have done something in a panic??? idk man i like the idea.


End file.
